Ex-Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell was arrested in Alabama yesterday after being found in possession of codeine syrup.

It apparently isn't new news. Raiders beat writer Jerry McDonald commented on the event on Twitter by saying "Wish I had a dollar for every time I got an e-mail or a tip about Russell and prescription cough syrup..."

Russell had been linked with several teams in recent days, including the Jets, but his arrest may end up keeping him out for the 2010 season or even have the effect of ending his NFL career.

Supposedly the Jets had some level of interest before, though it was never really explained exactly what that level was. But yeah, I'm thinking his NFL career was already on life-support to begin with. This is just pulling the plug on it.

Russell maybe goign to have to join Hamilton Tigers-Cats now. Canada rights belong to them somehow. don't know how that league work but they must draft nfl players orn somehting. if join Hamilton then goign to be on NFL network this seaosn becuuase somne tigers cats games on. one on july 10 so wont be in that one but maybe laterr tones. with lager field there might be able to air out ball real good.

I don't know why Joe refers to a "lager field" when we all know he prefers ales to lagers. Or maybe the Tiger-Cats unis were designed by Karl Lagerfeld? Raiderjoe is such a multi-layered guy, it is sometimes difficult for mere mortals to keep up with the references.

With these guys, you can't be 100% certain... was that "thank you for taking the media heat off me" or "thank you for sending me a case of your syrup last month..." or perhaps "thanks for that double-chocolate-chip with marshmallow fluff cookie recipe you sent me." or maybe "thanks for the lawyer referral."

Am I the only one who thinks that this should (not to say it will) actually HELP JaMarcus's stock around the league? Absent this issue, Russell was just a high school and college star who couldn't hack it in the NFL – it was said he didn't have the skills upstairs to hack it in the pro game...

But in light of this development, maybe instead he's a guy who all along had the potential ascribed to him, and was just side-tracked by an addiction. If I'm in an NFL front office, I'm thinking just get him over the codeine thing (not like it's heroin) and now you've got a guy who's hungry to show he's really got it. Not like it would be an expensive experiment at this point.

Hey, at least it explains why he was falling asleep in the team meetings.

I had a similar thought, but quickly dismissed it. Russell still is just a high school and college star who couldn't hack it in the NFL. As for his skills upstairs, I do think there might be a small grain of "oh, that explains it" that can be taken away from this. But I don't think we can conclude that this is the cause of his problems, rather than just the latest example of them.

Russell never did show much of any promise at the NFL level. Unless we're prepared to conclude that his entire NFL body of work is nullified by this, I don't think there's much reason to take a flyer on him now. He'll need to get himself right, play well for at least one year in the CFL or UFL, and then see if someone will give him a shot, a la Lawrence Phillips (which is not an encouraging example).

Clearly I, like anybody else, can only guess. But my guess is you have the causality reversed. He doesn't suck because he's a codeine fiend; he's a codeine fiend because he sucks. There is tremendous pressure associated with being a high-profile NFL draftee, both in terms of actually doing the job and with massive public expectations (and at least doubly so for quarterbacks). Some can hack it, some can't. Those who can't might resort to escapism and self-medication; codeine is one route to take. This is amateur psychology, to be sure. But it is the same amateur psychology I would employ if I were an NFL GM, and I would conclude that the young man simply lacks the psychological make-up to be an NFL quarterback. More succinctly, the codeine isn't an explanation, the codeine is a confirmation.

Regardless, here's hoping he gets his act together, not so much on the field, but in life.

ACTUALLY of all the well-known street drugs out there, heroin is the closest thing to codeine. The only difference (though it's a big and important one) is that heroin is absorbed across the blood-brain-barrier almost immediately, creating a euphoric "rush," while other forms of morphine act on the brain much more slowly because they're absorbed gradually. It's not going to be as addicting, but prescription-strength codeine is not something people should be playing around with.

David Humm was not an exceptional athlete. He was an infrequently used backup for the Oakland Raiders for about a decade. But he was always there and ready. Despite all his gifts, Jamarcus Russell can't hold a candle to David Humm.

David Humm got MS at 36. Wikipedia says he does Oakland Raider color commentary still, but I am not sure about that. Still, that he ever did shows that the man has real character. Unlike Russell.

McQuilken probably didn't receive ~$30 million in exchange for being the worst QB ever. That's where JaMarcus really shines. He doesn't have the worst output of all time, but on a per $ basis, he's neck-and-neck with Ryan Leaf for the championship.

These are just quickie lists, obviously--the first one is everyone with at least 9 points of approximate value (Russell has 8) and the second is everyone with at least as many attempts as Russell (680) and an ANY/A+ of 82 or higher (Russell is at 81).
Kim McQuilken does not appear on either of these lists.

While I have to agree that the comparison seems a bit, um, arbitrary, I am oddly grateful for the David Humm flashback. Without that post, I would have never thought about Jamarcus Russell and then thought about a skinny, white, left-handed option quarterback. But that only demonstrates the limitations of my narrow mind.

I have to say this is a seminal schadenfreude moment. Usually I have much sympathy for people in difficult positions, but in Fatboy's case $40 million for three wasted years and being picked at the expense of someone decent; it provides satisfaction.

I understand Dimeford's point though. The quote implies that the writer received potentially hundreds of tips pointing to the same story. That doesn't mean he can slander Russell in the press, but maybe he could do a little digging. I'm pretty sure they still learn about that kind of stuff in J-school.

Most Recent FO Features

This week: a bad coach gets paid, then insulted; a bad quarterback gets optimistic; another bad quarterbcak gets a cunning plan; a bad play gets Matt Ryan irked; a bad play gets burned; and Jets and Raiders fans get drunk.